Presenter/Contact
Presenter
Wayne Peters, Mayor Pro Tem District 5
Contact Info
wpeters@nbtexas.org
Subject Header
SUBJECT:
Title
Discuss and consider possible action for a proposed response to the Environmental Protection Agency on its proposed Ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standard designation.
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BACKGROUND / RATIONALE:
Mayor Pro Tem Peters requested this item be on the agenda.
On March 30, 2018 the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) announced its proposed designation for the 8 county San Antonio Area for the 2015 Ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standard. In order to receive full consideration, public comments must be submitted to the EPA by April 30, 2018, and the final designation determinations for the eight counties in the San Antonio area will be announced by July 17, 2018. Once new designations take effect, they govern what subsequent regulatory actions the state and the EPA must take to improve or preserve air quality in each area.
According to the official website of the U.S. E.P.A., after the EPA sets a new National Ambient Air Quality Standard or revises an existing standard for each criteria air pollutant, the Clean Air Act requires the EPA to determine if the county meets the new standards.
States submit recommendations to the EPA as to whether an area is attaining the national ambient air quality standards for a criteria pollutant. The states base these recommendations on air quality data collected from monitors at locations in urban and rural settings as well as other information characterizing air quality such as modeling. After working with the states and considering the information from air quality monitors, and/or models, the EPA will "designate" an area as attainment or nonattainment for the standard.
If the air quality in a geographic area meets or is cleaner than the national standard, it is called an attainment area (designated “unclassifiable/attainment”); areas that don't meet the national standard are called nonattainment areas. In some cases, the EPA is not able to determine an area's status after evaluating the available information. Those areas are designated "unclassifiable."
Once designations take effect, state and local governments must develop implementation plans outlining how areas will attain and maintain the standards by reducing air pollutant emissions.
Attachments:
• EPA Notice of Public Comment on Proposed Designation for the San Antonio - New Braunfels MSA (Metropolitan Statistical Area)
• Draft Letter from AACOG (Alamo Area Council of Governments) Board of Directors to the EPA
• Draft Letter from New Braunfels to the EPA
ADDRESSES A NEED/ISSUE IN A CITY PLAN OR COUNCIL PRIORITY:
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FISCAL IMPACT:
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Recommendation
COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION:
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STAFF RECOMMENDATION:
N/A